Tag: body

DAILY PRAYERS FOR GUYS

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For a Healthy Body Image

Lord God,
Your Word assures us that we are fearfully and wonderfully made. While we marvel at the detail and design that went into creating mankind, the crown of your creation, we confess that we don’t always feel all that special. While women have traditionally struggled more with body image, men are not immune. Images of shirtless men sporting six packs or hitting the gym are widespread, and can leave those with dad bods discouraged and deflated. Lead guys to be realistic and reasonable about their physical appearances, and to be willing to share their struggles with others. Let us embrace taking care of our bodies as a natural part of our calling, and just one more way we can honor and thank you. Help us to view it as a privilege and not a pain, and let our worth be determined not by what we see in the mirror, but by remembering the price you were willing to pay to make us yours. 

In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen. 

DAILY PRAYERS FOR GUYS

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To Be Mindful of My Physical Health on the Weekends

Gracious Lord,
Weekends can be challenging when it comes to my physical health. During the weekdays, when daily routines are in place, eating healthy and staying active or working out come more naturally. I find it easier to stay on track with my health goals when that structure is in place. Weekends, however, can throw off those healthy patterns and plans that are in place Monday through Friday.

Since my actions and behaviors follow my thinking, give me a healthy mindset leading up to and during the weekends. Keep me from viewing weekends as some sort of reward for good behavior during the week, where I can disregard healthy habits and good choices. Rather than seeing the weekend as a break to treat myself and indulge, give me a more balanced perspective to appreciate its flexibility and freedom, allowing me to enjoy the pleasures of food and drink in moderation. In place of regular workouts, let me find satisfaction in fun, active alternatives that keep me from remaining sedentary all weekend. Grant me also the contentment of allowing the weekend to provide my body and mind with the necessary rest and margin I need as well. 

In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen. 

DAILY PRAYERS FOR GUYS

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To Care for My Body

Incarnate Christ,
I marvel that you took on a body to satisfy the law and secure my righteousness through your perfect life of obedience. But you didn’t stop there! You offered up that very same human body as the unblemished sacrifice for all sin on Good Friday. Finally, you brought that lifeless body back from the dead three days later, just as you promised. Now you oversee all things for my benefit in that glorious body until you reveal it again on the Last Day.

Through all of this work you redeemed not just my soul, but my body as well. Surely this shows how highly you regard your gift of a body that you entrust to all people! Let me have that same high regard for my body. Too often we think too little of our bodies, rather than viewing them as the holy temple with which you have blessed us. Help me to see my physical body as a means by which I honor and thank you, and to tend to it in a way that aligns with this view. Since I also love and serve others with my body, I want to care for it and manage my health in a way that allows me to function optimally for as many years as you grant me on earth.

In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen. 

DAILY PRAYERS FOR GUYS

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To Care for Your Gifts of Body and Life

Holy Father,
The Ten Commandments are intended to be a blessing, not a burden. You have given us the precious gift of life, as well as marvelous bodies to carry out your will and your work in this world. While your grace and mercy compel us to protect your gift of life and to care for it, so often my own selfishness puts my body and life and the bodies and lives of others at risk. I neglect the care of my own body, disregarding what I eat, and making choices that put my health at risk. My body is a temple, and I dishonor you when I fail to properly care for it. And, while I may never have taken anyone’s life physically, since you view hatred toward others on the same plane as murder itself, I am guilty. 

You, on the other hand, valued life so much that you gave up the life of your only Son for the lives of all others. Having been spiritually raised up from the dead to this new life, now give me that same appreciation for life and the opportunities you give me to care for and to protect my own life and the lives of others. Help me to see and to embrace all the ways I can honor and serve you and others with my body and life.

In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen. 

DAILY PRAYERS FOR GUYS

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To Care for My Body

Almighty God,
We are fearfully and wonderfully made. The more we discover about our bodies and how marvelously you have designed them to function, the more in awe of you we are. Not only are we as human beings the crown of your creation, but you also showed how highly you regard our physical bodies through your incarnation, clothing yourself in flesh and blood! Help me to remember that my body is a gift from you, and just like all gifts that you give, you entrust them to us to manage and care for in ways that honor you. 

While you are responsible for numbering my days, I want to do everything I can to protect and preserve the physical body you’ve given me. Give me wisdom regarding my diet and curb my appetite and desire for food that can negatively impact my health in the short or long-term. Guard me from being overly sedentary and instill in me the discipline to exercise and/or maintain a reasonable level of physical activity. Lead me to establish a daily routine that also allows for adequate sleep each night, enabling my body to receive the rest and recovery time it needs to function at an optimal level. All of this I ask so that I may glorify you and effectively serve my neighbor with a healthy body for as long as you determine. 

In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.